RENO, NV.- The Coeur d’Alene Art Auction, known for selling the highest-quality Western paintings and sculpture from historical and contemporary artists, is pleased to announce its 36th annual Western art auction, to be held at full capacity at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada on July 31, 2021. With over $300 million in sales over the last 15 years, the auction has been hailed as “The Biggest and Most Successful Auction of Western Art” by the Wall Street Journal, and was named “The Most Important Annual Event for Collectors of Western Art” by the New York Times. Once again, the Coeur d’Alene Art Auction is certain to be the high point of the Western auction world.

Museum-quality paintings will cross the block, headlined by masterpieces from Charles M. Russell, Frederic Remington, Oscar Berninghaus, Albert Bierstadt, Frank Tenney Johnson, Leon Gaspard, and Walter Ufer.

A rare, major oil painting by Charles M. Russell will headline the show. Roping a Wolf was painted during Russell’s prime in 1904 and carries a presale estimate of $1,000,000 – 1,500,000. The painting has never been to auction and was once in the collection of the Amon Carter Museum. Coeur d’Alene has long been the specialists in selling works by Russell. Montana’s favorite artist has been a mainstay of the auction for decades, and this year features a large selection of his works. Cowboy Bronco showcases the high action Russell was known for, and is estimated at $150,000 – 250,000. It will be joined by Indian on Pinto ($150,000 – 250,000), The Proposal ($100,000 – 150,000), Brave’s Return for his Answer ($80,000 – 120,000) and an important group of four illustrated letters by the artist.

The Domain of His Ancestors, by Berninghaus, has been written about extensively, and according to renowned Western art historian Dr. Larry Len Peterson, the painting is “the best Berninghaus” in existence. The 25 × 30 inch oil on canvas is estimated at $400,000 – 600,000.

Johnson’s The Horse Thief, painted in 1925, comes from an important Texas collection, and carries a presale estimate of $300,000 – 500,000.

Ufer’s Greasewood and Sage, which was recently featured the San Diego Museum of Art’s Visions of the West: Highlights from the Bloomberg Collection, is estimated at $300,000 – 500,000. Other works from the esteemed collection of John and Toni Bloomberg include Carl Oscar Borg’s The Herd ($80,000 – 120,000), which is considered to be one of the best ever by the founding member of the California Art Club; Eanger Irving Couse’s Moonlight Sonata ($200,000 – 300,000); Grandma Moses’ The Church in the Hills ($150,000 – 250,000); and Joseph Sharp’s Storm on the Mountains ($50,000 – 75,000).

Additional important works include Leon Gaspard’s Argonne Forest ($250,000 – 350,000), W. H. D. Koerner’s Bringing Him In ($100,000 – 150,000), Edgar Payne’s Along the Trail ($225,000 – 325,000), Peter Hurd’s The Eve of St. John ($100,000 – 150,000), Albert Bierstadt’s Mount Baker, Washington ($250,000 – 350,000), John Clymer’s Visitors at Fort Clatsop ($ 200,000 – 300,000), Philip R. Goodwin Hitting the Trail ($100,000 – 150,000), Frederic Remington’s The Borderland of the Other Tribe ($200,000 – 300,000) and G. Harvey’s Among the Silence of Canyon Echoes ($80,000 – 120,000).

Several strong representations of E. William Gollings’ work will be represented at this year’s sale, with Winter Country ($100,000 – 150,000) – a 34 × 24 inch oil – leading the charge. Cattle Drive ($60,000 – 90,000), Insult to Injury ($ 40,000 – 60,000), and Lady at Roundup ($40,000 – 60,000) were purchased directly from the artist by a prominent and celebrated Montana ranching family and will be on the market for the first time.

One of the most-important Tom Lovell paintings to hit the auction block will be in this year’s sale. Horse Raid ($ 250,000 – 350,000) comes from an important Texas collector, and conveys an overnight raid at an encampment. According to the artist, “Horse raiding was an important part of the Plains Indians culture. The idea was to cut the picket ropes and lead the best horses away by stealth. But a dog barks and the camp is aroused; the raiders leave without ceremony, with a few captured animals and no dignity.”

Famed landscape still-life painter Richard Schmid, who recently passed away, will have several prominent pieces featured, many coming from the esteemed K. T. Wiedemann Foundation Collection, including Hewick Church, North Yorkshire, England ($60,000 – 90,000), a charming painting capturing the English countryside, Charles Gates Dawes House Evanston, Illinois ($25,000 – 35,000), and others.

Known for his Western action scenes, Herman Hansen’s Attack on the Stagecoach ($80,000 – 120,000) is a large oil, depicting the rough-and-tumble nature of life in the early days of the West. It is considered to be one of the artists top works.

Unique to the auction are three important Edmund Osthaus paintings – Let’s Get Acquainted ($40,000 – 60,000), Returning Home ($40,000 – 60,000), and Two Hunting Dogs ($40,000 – 60,000) – which are being deaccessioned by the Grand Rapids Museum (Grand Rapids, Michigan).

The California State University, Northridge (Los Angeles) collection of Harry Jackson Sculpture will be sold in its entirety. Featuring 30 of the artist’s most sought-after bronzes. The collection is creating buzz as being an opportunity of a lifetime for Jackson aficionados and features some rare, fresh to market castings.

Thomas Blackshear II’s painting The Mighty Wind ($25,000 – 35,000) – which is the cover piece for The Killers’ 2020 single “My Own Soul’s Warning” – profiles the contemporary artists. Other blue-chip contemporary masters include Martin Grelle, Tim Cox, Z. S. Liang, Michael Dudash, Andy Thomas, Luke Frazier, and Bonnie Marris amongst many others.